Saudi Aramco Halts Production from Safaniyah Oil Field

Saudi Aramco halted oil production last week at Safaniyah, the world's largest offshore oilfield, in an unplanned shutdown that removes 1 million barrels a day of heavy crude from the market, according to a report.

The potential impact on oil prices depends on how long the field is down, says Price Futures Group's Phil Flynn, and "the thinking is that the field produces heavy crude, and the world is short of that [type of] oil" because of the OPEC output cuts and U.S. sanctions on Iran and Venezuela.